Sunday, 5 June 2011

Al Bano & Romina Power

Al Bano and Romina Power were an Italian pop music which was formed by Al Bano Carissi (May 20, 1943), an Italian singer, actor and winemaker and Romina Francesca Power (October 2, 1951), an American-born singer and actress. Al Bano met Romina during the filming of the movie Nel Sole in 1967 and they Married on July 26, 1970 in Cellino San Marco.

Al Bano made his debut in 1966 and became very popular. Romina played in several musicals during her childhood and sang in Mexiacan Mariachi bands. As a couple they made seven films, based on their songs, between 1967 and 1983. Romina released three solo albums between 1969 and 1974 while Al Bano recored many successful singles and albums.

In 1975 Al Bano and Romina released their first album as a duo which was followed by numerous others. In 1976 the duo represented Italy at the ESC with the Italian/English song We'll Live It All Again which came 7th.

In 1982 the duo had their biggest hit with Felicita which came 2nd at the Festival di Sanremo. The song broke Italian records and became a hit all over the world.

In 1984 they won the Festival di Sanremo with the song Ci Sarà And in 1985 they represented Italy once again at the ESC where they came 7th with the song Magic Oh Magic.

In 1986, Al Bano and Romina Power signed a contract with WEA and published the album Sempre Sempre, which confirmed their international success.

In 1987, the album Libertà! was published. The couple's daughter Ylenia sang a duet with her mother Romina in "Abbi fede". The album sold well in Italy and across Europe. The same year they participated at the Festival di Sanremo 1987 with the song Nostalgia Canaglia. In 1989 they participated once again at the Festival di Sanremo with the song Cara terra mia.

In 1991, Al Bano and Romina Power again participated in the Festival di Sanremo, this time with the song Oggi Sposi. In the same year, they celebrated 25 years of their joint artistic careers with an anthology which included their most popular songs. They also wrote their autobiography, entitled Autoritratto dalla A alla R and released a video entitled the same.

In 1993, their album Notte e giorno was published.

After their daughter Ylenia Carrisi disappeared in January 1994 in New Orleans, Al Bano and Romina cancelled all of their concerts and dedicated all their time to the search of their daughter. Police efforts yielded no results.

In 1995, the couple released their last album Emozionale, followed by a video version, Una Vita Emozionale.

In 1996, Al Bano participated in the Sanremo Music Festival, singing È La Mia Vita. In 1997 he released a solo album Concerto Classico, while his wife recorded a CD with her son Yari and composer Maurizio Fabrizio, though this CD has never been released. She also had a part in the television mini-series The Return of Sandokan and in 1998, she published a book about her father, entitled Cercando mio padre.

In 1999, Al Bano announced their separation in an open letter to the weekly magazine Oggi, in which he explained reasons for their break-up. In 2008, Romina moved to USA (Arizona) while Al Bano was living in Cellino San Marco.

Al Bano still tours all over the world. He is a constant on Italian television and has a large number of fans who follow his career very closely. To date Al Bano has sold 165 million albums around the world.

In 2005 Romina was a judge in the Italian TV show Ballando con le stelle (dancing with the stars). She also organizes art exhibitions.